Blood Fox
by Raven Midnight Memoryz
Summary: A thrilling story about a trouble some girl sent to a Community Service camp due to some bad choices but something about this camp is off. With the help of a dreamy young man she might be able to out run this predator.


Blood Fox

The alarm, most pleased with its annoying job of waking me up each and every morning, blared in its own tone to its morning wake up song of course waking me up to the chilling morning air of December. I reached for the damned little alarm clock unwillingly, as the warmth of my tightly wound quilts kept me from fully waking up. Soon after the alarm came the banging at the old wooden door, and the yelling began. First day out here and I was already getting yelled at, I unrolled myself from the quilts and hopped from my bed.

"I'm up!" I yelled back as I scrambled through my bags for some warm clothes. The banging stopped and then moved to the next doors. I pulled out some jeans and a long sleeved 'Ozzy Rules' shirt, and my morning bag. I made my way out the door and down the hall to the bathroom which to my surprise was empty so I took the opportunity and took a fast shower. I could hear the echo of the banging on all the others doors until I turned the water on, nice warm water. Nothing betters them starting the chilling morning off with a nice warm shower.

I brushed the knots out of my damp hair now getting each and every tangle out, I was dressed now in the jeans and 'Ozzy Rules' shirt, makeup done and now I was beginning on my hair, brushing it down. The light knocking started about then, yelling at me to hurry up. I slipped my feet into my Vans and graved the small bag from the counter and exited the bathroom. She glared at me as I slid past her, she was half asleep and had threat written in her eyes. I looked down at the floor away from her as I made my way back to my room, but he was standing there waiting for me.

His eyes glowed as she spotted me from down the hall. I'd never know why he found me so interesting, we only met yesterday and it was almost as if we were best friends.

"Good morning, Raven." he smiled when he said my name. I reached for the key in my pocket and slid it into the door.

"Hey Andy." I pushed the door open and walked in, he followed. I placed the small bag back in my bags and snatched a jacked from it. "How are you this morning?"

"Tired, I have never waked up this early in my whole life."

"I know how you feel." We left the room after that, I turned to lock the door and we continued down the hall. The old pine door sat unhappily on it hinges as it looked at us waiting for us to push it open.

"So where are you from?" Andy randomly asked as he opened the pined door for me.

"L.A." I said as I gazed at the snow that now lay on the ground. Snow, my least favorite thing in the whole world.

"Really? Wow, you a really far from home." _Well, that was a duh._ I walked alongside him avoiding the chill of the snow that blow in the wind.

"Yeah, I miss the sun," I mumbled, "And my kitty."

"You have a cat? What's its name?" I looked up at him and he smiled at me.

"_Her_ name is Amy." I smiled back at him.

"What is she?"

"Heck if I know, all I know is she's a black cat. Like one of them witches cats, if you know what I mean."

"Witches cat, like black with yellow eyes?"

"Yep."

"She sounds cool."

"She is the sweetest thing." We walked across the snow now down an already walked upon path. "Everything I'm not."

He laughed at my last comment. "Well I doubt that."

"You don't even know me."

"Yes I do."

"Prove it."

"Well your name is Raven Midnight you hail from L.A. and you have a witch's cat named Amy." I glared at him and shook my head.

"That proves nothing, Andrew. You only know little about me. You don't know my favorite color or what music I listen to or if I have a boyfriend." The huge building came up from the snow, steaming with warmth. We were steps from the door and minutes from the warmth of inside but Andrew stopped and looked at me.

"Well what _is_ your favorite color? What kind of music _do_ you listen to? And do you have a boyfriend?" He smiled playfully.

"Really, Andrew?" I stopped and turn to look at him, was he kidding? I wanted to be in that building right now but of course he had to keep me from it. The chill of the morning frost was now eating at my bare skin, and chilling shiver ran its way through me.

"What?" he defended, his smile still sitting on his perfect face.

"Can we get inside first? I'm freezing to death over here." I shivered.

"Only if you answer me."

"Ugh, whatever gets me warm." I said turning on my heels and trotting to the building. He chuckled behind me and I could only imagine what he was thinking about. I opened the door and a gush of warm air filled my lungs with fire. Andrew caught the door, opening it up wider.

"So you gonna tell me now." He asked as he stomped his feet on the rug under our feet.

"Purple, depends, and I'm not telling you." I said walking over to take a seat at one of the tables.

"What? Why?"

"Cause."

"That's not an answer."

"Yes it is." I defended; he chuckled and took a seat by me. We were the only people in there but there was someone making noise in the back, behind the counter which looked like a kitchen. I watch the new snow start to fall outside the window next to where I sat, folding my arms on the table. I felt Andrew's eyes burning into my skin but as soon as I felt it the burn was gone. That when I saw it, it was a blur at first as it walked closer and then I could see it clearly. A fox a very red fox, it walked on through the ranch, slowly until its eyes connected to mine and then ran away. I turned to look at Andrew who was watching me. "So now you have a staring problem?"

"Sorry." He looked away. I smiled and looked at the tiled floor.

"… Did you see her? She looked like some emo freak with her jet black hair and oh my god did you see her arms? They were covered in scars and burses. I can't believe he went for her. We are way prettier then that…" The door opened then and the chatter of someone else's conversation bellowed in with the cold air. The girl who was talking shut her mouth as soon as she saw me, the girl behind her didn't see me but respond to the other one.

"Ugh, I know. What a freak." Her eyes still didn't see me until her eyes connected to her friend's face which was pale and then she followed her gaze to me.

"Good morning." I sang to them, but in the back of my mind I called them every bad name in the books and growled but I just smiled at them as they looked at me like I was some kind of disease.

"Morning." One managed to say as they slipped to a table on the other side of the small area. I looked over at Andrew who was glaring at them.

"Andy?" I whispered to him, his eyes snapped to me, "Don't let them get under your skin."

"They have no right…" he clinched his teeth as he trailed off.

"They might not have any kind of right but they sure think they do." I placed my hand on his clinched fist that sat on the table top. His face softened as his eyes connected to mine, and I couldn't help but stare into is delicate blue eyes that read so many different things. His hand shifted undermine as he unrolled in from its fist. The door open again as a group of guys walked in and as they did I dropped my stare from Andrew's and took back my hand. I shift to look out the window again, letting my bangs fall in front of my eyes.

I washed the silver tray smoothly rubbing the soapy sponge on it, washing all the leftovers off of it. The sound of clanking metal of the pots and bands rang like bells, the water splashed as I rinsed the silver tray off. Andrew was on the other side of the wall at the counter, I think, helping with unpacking some boxes. I placed the silver tray on a rack and started on a huge pot. I have been doing this for hours, dish after dish. My back and legs were starting to burn, and my gloved hands just wanted to breathe again, the fresh air. I couldn't help but think of Amy and what the troublemaking kitty was up too right now, well that and Andrew in the other room.

Another girl sat down a couple more trays. _Oh My Goodness, there is no end!_ The beam of light that came in from the small window above the door had now faded to black and I could only hope it was quits soon. There was a sudden clash of metal hitting tile; I turned to see one of the girls staring at a rack that was filled with dishes now lying on the ground with all the dishes now on the floor. A lady ran in from the other room, she look unhappy at the girl then turned to me. The lady asked what happened and the girl stated her case and the lady shook her and then she walked back to the other room. The girl smirked at me.

"Have fun washing these all _again_." I was gonna start crying, I could feel it but mostly I wanted to kill her. I sighed and finish washing the pot.

By the time I got them all done the lady walked in again with some very good news.

"Girls, get to bed, times up." she showed us off. I pulled the rubber gloves from my skin and took a deep breath. I made my way to the door. I pushed the door open to find myself back in the small area where I had been sitting with Andrew this morning and to my surprise Andrew was sitting there again, waiting. I smiled and walked around the counter to him. He looked up at me from the tiled floor and his eyes lit up.

"Hey." he said as he stood up from his chair.

"Hi." I stood in front of him now. "What's up?"

"Wanting to go to sleep right about now."

"Same here."

"So how many hours do you have?"

"About a couple weeks worth… If I'm good that is." I winked. We started our way out the door and into the cold night.

"How did you get that much?"

"I rather not say if you don't mind."

"Oh." He blows out a cloud of steam as he answered. The surrounding lights lit the path back to the cabin. Something caught my eye in the dark. Even in the dark it appeared red, the fox stoked out in the distant, pulling something big, maybe a deer.

"Yeah." I shivered and hugged myself.

"Are you cold?" he asking. _Well I think that's a little obvious!_ I breathed a huge cloud of steam into my hand.

"Yeah." I bit the pieces of metal that were pierced into my lower lips. He removed his jacket from his shoulders and laid the jacket over my shoulders. "Aww, I don't want you to freeze to death out here." I tried to give the jacket back but he wouldn't let me.

"I'm not cold."

"You will be when the cold sinks its needle-like teeth into you."

"Unlike you, I've lived here my whole life. I don't get cold easily." He chuckled to himself.

"No, that just makes your nonhuman. Everyone I know…"

"Everyone you know lives in one of the sunniest places in America." He cut me off.

"Not true."

"Really?" He looked at me with a half smile.

"No." I mumbled and he laughs at me. The old pine door stood there waiting again, wait for us to graved the small knob of the door and pulled it open. When I open the door I found my body froze, on the floor in front of me was a pool of blood. The other doors in the hallways stood open and the other people circled around it. The blood trailed from the first room. I could see the strikes of fingers trying to grab life and the paw prints the trailed with it._ Paws? An animal did this? How the hell did it get in here?_

"What happened?" My lips weren't as frozen as the rest of my body. One of the girl looked up at me from where she bend down next to the floor.

"We have no idea. There wasn't even a scream and then he was just gone." she bubbled as she rocked herself back to normal. I turned to see Andrew and for once his eyes weren't on me but glued to the blood stained floor. His eyes were huge filled with million different things, questions and wonders.

"Andrew?" I whispered. His eyes still glued to the floor with no reply. "Andy?" His eyes lifted from the floor and looked at me. His eyes bled with pain but he soon washed that away with his enchantment for me. He didn't reply but I really didn't have to say anything, he was ready to walk away. He still seemed to be frozen but when I took his hand to pull him down the hall he unthawed. I tried so hard not to look back at the bloody sight because I knew deep down what had done it but not why.  
We stopped at my door; I took a deep breath before unlocking it. Andrew looks at me, now with a worried look.

"What?" I asked looking down at the knob, not sure if I wanted to go in. _What if it was there? _I wanted anything not to go in there alone.

"You look really shock up." I dropped my hold on his hand to twist the metal rings in my lip. I didn't know if I should lie or not. I looked up at him preparing myself to lie but I found myself unable.

"I'm not crazy." I mumbled.

"I never said you were."

"Andy, do me a favor, would you?" I whispered into my hand, looking at the floor now, the bloodless floor at my feet.

"Of course." His gazed burned into my face, or the little he could see that is.

"Don't leave me alone tonight." I whispered.

"If that is what you want." I looked up at him my bangs hiding my eyes. His eyes were filled with many kinds of questions as he looked down at me. I twisted the knob, waiting for whatever may be on the other side. The door fell open and my room laid cold and untouched as this morning before I left, we walked in. I looked everything over again, not a tack out of plan but the window. The black velvet that hung over it keeping the night out was hanging by one corner. I walked slowly to the small window to pin the other corner up. My eyes caught something out the window. The snow lay peaceful in its own blanket but the peace was broken by a trail. The moon can out from the black clouds bighting light to the sight, the trail was made with a red shape of a paw print. _The fox had been at my window, but why?_ Andrew stood behind me now, staring at the red prints too.

"What made those?"

"A fox." I closed my eyes and brought myself to pin the velvet back up. When I turned and open my eyes, Andrew stood there with more wonder as before but this time it was because of the tear that was running down my face. His thumb brushed my cheekbone as he removed the tear. He paused there for a moment taking in the feel of my skin, my eyes folded to a shut as I took in the feel of his cold hands on my cheek. He moved his had a bit to take it away from me but not sure if he should.

"Don't." I whispered opening my eyes. He looked at me and smiled, he took my face in his hand. His eyes flinched a little as he moved his eyes away from mine. I moved closer, making the space between us decrease with each step I took until there were only inches. His eyes watched me as if I was a new discovery. He crushed his lips to mine, moving his hand to the back of my neck. Our lips moved together like the wind and snow caught in a timely dance. I could feel the warmth of his breath as I tangled my fingers in his hair.

The room was still black with night but by the clock on my phone say it was about six in the morning. I unweave myself from Andrew's arms, trying not to wake him up. I slipped on my vans that lay on the floor next to the bed and wrapped my jacket around me. I was about to do something that might not end to well. Something that you could call stupid, but I was gonna do it, I need to know. I open the door with a soundless sweep and I was on my way down the hall way.

The paw prints sat untouched still but now there was a new trail by them, mine. I followed the blood stained snow deep into the woods were a small stream had nested itself into the land. My feet carried me on, next to the icy water. That's when it caught my eye. The figure of a person lay under the ice, almost sleeping but I assured myself it wasn't a person. A little bit down the steam I found myself with my eyes glued to something horrible. There it laid, a sack of some kind swimming in a puss like pool with the redness of the blood hiding itself in the water. Something in me told me to poke it but I stood frozen to the cold and the shook. The sack moved and I flinched, this was peculiar. The growl broke me form my gaze, my eyes connecting to the beast, who made such a threatened sound. The fox's blood stained teeth were prepared to rip me to pieces, and its eyes were anything but friendly. It took a step forward into the icy stream. I turned on my heels and started running, just running. It didn't matter where I was going as long as I got there. The snarls begin to get closer as I tried so hard to get away. My mind was frozen but with only one thing on my mind; _to get away, to run!_ With my heart pounding so loud I couldn't hear my feet racing in the snow or the predator running behind them, my feet caught on something, bringing me down. I could feel the breath of the fox on my ankle, ready to take a bit out of it. I closed my eyes, giving up. The chatter round the corner and the footsteps with them.

"What are you doing down there?" A worn out voice called to me. I open my eyes to see an old couple standing in front of me. I look back at my feet, where the fox should be but it was gone.

"I fell." I said panting.

"Dear heavens, my dear you look like you had a bad scare." The women said bending down to help me up.

"You must be one of them kids from Faith Ranch, am I right?" the man said as I took in the moment.

"Yes, yes that's right." I shivered.

"Well you should now better them walking out here alone. Here we'll walk you back." The women wrapped her arm around mine and dragged me along.

"Thank you." I mumbled looking back wondering why the fox didn't take its chance.

I open the door, letting all the steam out from my shower. I tiptoed back to my room trying not to make the floor creak. The door was unlocked when I twisted the handle; I stepped in lightly closing the door behind me. Andrew was still asleep on the over quilted bed, I skipped over to the bed and sat carefully down by his side. Andrew looked so peaceful, so happy with whatever he was dreaming. He didn't know the horror that I had just seen the fact that it wasn't safe out here anymore. He reminded me of home somehow, home with my kitty. Andrew shifted and then his eyes opened to look at me. His eyes were overwhelmed with wonder and sleep.

"Hey." I whispered, lying down next to him and then he rested his hand on my stomach.

"Where did you go earlier?" he whispered back. I didn't realize he had notice my absent but I couldn't tell him that I put my life in danger because I was curious. Curiosity killed the cat, he'd say, but thank goodness I wasn't that dead cat... this cat got away.

"To take a shower."I lied but he shook his head with doubt.

"If you took a shower then why didn't you take your towel and bag?"

"I did."

"Yeah, an hour later when you came back." He knew about the fox and maybe if I told him about the _almost_ attack he'd make scents of everything, maybe helping understand it all. "Please, Raven. Don't lie to me." His eyes were unreadable until his eyes began to shape into a puppy-dog plead.

"I'm not crazy." I mumbled to myself, closing my eyes and getting ready to say it all. "I followed the tracks, and I came to a stream where there was some freaky stuff…" I trailed off trying to find away to finish and not freak him out. "I got chased by the fox, and if it wasn't for this old couple that came down the trail I might have been fox chaw."

"You did what?" His eyes weld in horror, it made me feel horrible. I looked away and played with the metal in my lip with my tongue.

I accompanied the dishes again at the sink, as I tried so hard to not listen to the echo of the girls across the kitchen, who keeps talking crap about me. Again with Andrew is in the other room unpacking boxes, some time I get to see him when I go put something up that belongs in that room. I rubbed the pan in my hands with the soapy rag, then dipping it into the bleach and then raising it off with water. As the morning began and it started to settle, the kitchen began to silent itself, my head turned to them as they all hovered by the window abandoning their work.

"Hey look a fox." One girl gushed. _The fox?_ I pulled the rubber gloves from my hands and peeled the apron from my torso and turned to see what the girls were looking at. The fox stared in at the girls' only inches away from the glass. _Fox can't get through glass… can they?_ The fox's head turned and its wild eyes clawed into mine as it took a step back from the window.

"Ladies, get back to work." The older lady yelled back at us from the other room. My eyes didn't leave the fox as it walked slowly away but instead of leaving it turned sharply on its heels and at full speed came running back.

The crashing and the screaming girls drowned out my cry for Andrew. _Who ever thought of putting a sink in a corner needs to die_, I thought_._ The fox stepped lightly on the tiled floor trying not to fall. The girls had already run screaming out of the kitchen leaving me trapped in this stupid corner. The fox's snarl was almost a chuckle as it kept pressing its paws forward, coming closer. I have nowhere to go but back up until I come to the wall which isn't too far away now. I don't know how to feel, scared maybe or even screaming my head off. See I'd be the one who would be left mugged and dead in an ally while the screaming blond got the attention of someone who tackled the mugger. But in my case the mugger is a fox and well I'll still end up dead. My heart started to pound as my feet moved back to the wall making everything silent. My eyes still looked to the fox in front of me, and its unbreakable thought to end me.

The burn of someone staring made my eyes move from the fox to Andrew in horror. I felt the tears slide down my face now. It was all clear now, I was never gonna be happy and that fox was a sign of it. The fox leaped from its place in front of me, tackling it's pray… Me. Teeth dug deep into my arm, clamping down on the bleeding muscle. The pain didn't hit me until the claws ran down my side like razor blades. For a minute I swear I saw my life flash before my horror filled eyes, when the images ended it was filled with black and the beating of my heart seemed to be the only thing. The pain faded leaving me with a numb felling.

The warmth wrapped around me, like a hug, making me feel safe. I opened my eyes, I could still feel the tears on my face but now they were dry. Andrew held me in his arms, mumbling something. He sat he down on my bed, that's when I saw the blood. Andrew clawed through my stuff until he pulled out a blue box that was filled with first aid equipment. The stinging of the bite left my body felling torn to small bites. Andrew sat on the bed next to me wrapping a roll of while Band-Aid around my torso and arm. As he wound it tighter it felt like I was being bitten again by the fox.

"You need a hospital." Andrew said, his face was mangled with pain.

"I can tell." I breathed, "If only we could get to my car."

"There is really no chance of that." He looked to the door.

"What do you mean by that?" The snarling ripped through the hallway outside, answered my question. "You lead it back here?"

"I didn't lead it, it followed." the sound of claws scratched on the other side of the door. I curiosity of how we got here from the kitchen popped to mind.

"How did you get me away from it anyways?" I looked to Andrew who was still staring at the door. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed my forehead.

"I attacked the fox with a kitchen knife that was hanging on the rack next to me." My jaw hung from my head.

"Oh so now instead of just an insane hungry fox we have an insane pissed off hungry fox. Nice job." The claws dug into the door now making the space between us and fox decrease. My mind froze and my eyes stayed glued to the slowly-being-torn-down door. All possibilities of escape left my mind leaving me with doom.

"Andy?" my eyes closed as I tried to forget the danger. "Do me a favor before we die?"

"What? No."

"What?" my eyes opened to his words.

"Raven, were not gonna die." He pointed to the window. The clawing at the door stopped and then a loud pound moved the door. Andrew walked over to the window and pulled down the velvet that hung over it. The door move with another pound and Andrew opened the window. I joined him by the window he climbs out and I followed. The door inside fell down and the fox lashed out for the window.

"RUN!" Andrew said taking hold of my hand. The fox leaped out of the window following us to the parking lot full of cars.

There was no time to stop and take a breath, we had one chance and stopping wasn't included in that. Andrew and I spilled into my car and without a pause I started the car. The fox jumped on the hood snarling at us with the windshield being that only thing between us and the insane fox. My eyes locked to the fox and the car twisted to life jerking the fox off. I maneuvered the car swiftly and quickly out of the parking lot and on to the dirt road and soon back onto the highway.


End file.
